Students remember area vets

GAYLORD - It was at the eleventh hour, on the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918 that World War I came to an end.

Even since then, Nov. 11 has been a day to honor the veterans who served our country in every war before and since.

The Gaylord Middle School (GMS) again honored local veterans at the school's seventh annual Veterans Day program, a program which itself has garnered honors over the years.

More than 400 residents and veterans packed the middle school gym to for the ceremony. Among them was U.S. Congressman Bart Stupak, D-Menominee, who opened the event with a tribute to U.S. veterans of all wars, including the current war in Iraq.

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"We must be prepared to welcome back our veterans and be prepared to tend to their battle scars," Stupak said.

Also honored was Clarence "Peewee" Ralston, commander of the VFW and a veteran who has given countless hours of help to the middle school for its veterans' program. Honored, too, was Curt Brown, who was made an honorary faculty member for his training work with the students.

Principal Jerry Belanger was in for a surprise when he received an honorary proclamation from Gaylord Mayor Gladys Solokis for his patriotic efforts.

"For being the creator of, and the driving force behind this program; for your commitment to the armed services; for bringing the daily pledge of allegiance and the singing of the national anthem into Gaylord Middle School; and for helping to shape good, patriotic and knowledgeable young people, we honor you," Solokis told Belanger.

The Ladies of the Veterans of Foreign Wars then presented Belanger with a plaque to honor his work.

"These awards are very humbling, but it is the staff here, they are the people that make it happen every day," Belanger said.

Capt. William Brown of the U.S. Army was the guest speaker, telling in both frightening and touching detail his experiences in Iraq. He spoke of the Baathist and Fadayeen who ambushed and shot at them, and who took women and children to use as shields so American soldiers wouldn't shoot back. He spoke of the frightened Iraqi population who initially didn't know how to respond to American troops.

"They brought us their sick and wounded and we gave them aid right then and there," Brown said of Iraqi civilians. "When they saw we weren't heartless, they starting turning in names and pointing out Baathists who had reigned with terror since 1975."

A video tribute was presented that highlighted three area residents who served the U.S. in different ways. It featured James O'Connor, a Marine who fought in Korea, and whose son Christopher, also a Marine, died in the line of duty in 1989; Joe Theisen, who fought in World War II in the Air Force; and Ernie Grocock, who had an injury that kept him out of the armed services, yet he persevered in his efforts to serve his country and wound up working in an industrial factory making war-related machinery.

Chuck Nelson of Nelson Funeral Home gave the closing speech, explaining the history of the song "Taps," which is played to honor fallen veterans.

"Taps is about respect," Nelson said. "We need to bring respect back into our vocabulary. If we can educate ourselves, if we can learn respect and tolerance of people of different colors and different races, maybe we can stop this madness. That's my challenge to you," he told the middle school students.

"Let's end this concept of war," was Nelson's closing statement, which brought a standing ovation from the crowd.